The Art of French Frugality – How They Live Well on Less

The French have really mastered the art of frugality. Here’s how they live so well, without breaking the bank. French Frugality Tips & Simple Coq Au Vin recipe.

Discover how you can enjoy a rich, fulfilling life in France without spending a fortune! In this video, I share practical tips on how French families live happily on modest incomes, often under €4,000 per month for a 2 parent family, while still enjoying great food, beautiful homes, holidays, and cultural experiences.

Learn the secrets of French frugality, including:

DIY home improvements and creative hacks to save money

Secondhand shopping and treasure hunting for unique finds

Growing your own vegetables, herbs, and more—even in small spaces

Smart grocery shopping and cooking from scratch to reduce waste

Taking advantage of France’s free cultural events, libraries, and public spaces

Affordable local travel, cycling, and enjoying the French countryside

How French social life emphasizes experiences, not materialism

The benefits of France’s healthcare and education system

Plus, stay tuned until the end for my quick and simple Coq au vin recipe, a traditional French dish made with chicken and red wine—perfect for a fuss-free, flavorful meal at home.

Whether you’re dreaming of living in France or just want to adopt some French lifestyle tips, this video shows how to live well on less and savor life’s simple pleasures.

If you’re looking to improve your French, I highly recommend one-on-one lessons with iTalki. Here’s my affiliate link: https://www.italki.com/affshare?ref=af28243923

If you need to move money to France, open a Wise account and get your first transfer up to $600 free using my affiliate link: https://wi.se/livingwellinfrance (New customers only).

Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:20 French DIY tips and hacks
02:29 No keeping up with the neighbours
02:31 Growing your own food
02:53 Buying things second hand
03:37 Enjoying the free culture around you
03:54 Food shopping like the French and meal planning
05:10 Cycling whenever possible
05:39 Holidaying in France
06:11 How French houses consume less energy
06:30 The French social life
06:40 Why the French don’t need to earn a big salary
07:59 Coq Au Vin – easy recipe

Arial shots were filmed using the DJI Mini 3 Drone with DJI RC Screen. If you would like to purchase one via my affiliate link, then I will receive a small commmission at no exta fee for you:https://amzn.to/4gbujPR

Reading List:
These are some books I have read and really enjoyed, about life in France, the French and creativity. They are affiliate links which means if you purchase via this link, I will get a small commission at no extra fee for you. Thank you for helping support this channel!

The Bonjour Effect: The Secret Codes of French Conversation Revealed
https://amzn.to/3HyJ6Yb

The Culture Map
https://amzn.to/45ktWPl

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
https://amzn.to/45jW2u6

1000 Years of Annoying the French
https://amzn.to/3HynGue

Chez Nous: An easy guide for preparing to move or retire to France and the things to consider when planning to move abroad.
https://amzn.to/47xTiKY

A New Life in France: A Guide to Relocating from the US
https://amzn.to/4oDSzxZ

If you would like to view my available art, it’s here: www.jdyachtpaintings.com

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Coq au Vin Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs (or a mix of thighs and drumsticks)
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
Two tbsp tomato puree.
4 slices of bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 carrots, sliced
200g (7 oz) mushrooms, sliced
500 ml (2 cups) red wine (Burgundy or Pinot Noir preferred)
250 ml (1 cup) chicken stock
1 tsp thyme (dried or fresh)

#frenchfrugality #savingmoney #livewellforless

You can view my available, original artwork here: www.jdyachtpaintings.com

You can live a good life in France without spending a fortune. [Music] Most people I know earn under €2,000 per month and live perfectly happy, full, and contented lives. [Music] Hello and a very warm welcome back to Living Well in France. Today we’re going to talk about French fugality. the fact that many French families enjoy great food, beautiful homes, lovely holidays, yet spend way less than you think. Bonjour. I’m Jane, and if you’re new here, I share everything that’s positive about the French lifestyle. After living here for 20 years, I’ve managed to pick up some of those key secrets that the French use to make their euro go far further than you would imagine. Today, I’ll give you some practical tips that you can apply to your life, no matter where you live. French homeowners love doing it themselves. We painted our entire kitchen cabinets, walls, and even redid the backsplash for the price of a couple of fancy dinners. We also ripped out the old vinyl and laid in flooring ourselves. Labor savings over €2,000. You don’t need to be a pro. We’re currently renovating a student apartment and my husband learned everything off YouTube. It’s been a lot of work, but the savings are absolutely worth it. We bought a caravan that came with some very old-fashioned cushions. So, I just made these removable covers with this lovely soft but inexpensive material and just attached it with elastic so they can easily be removed and washed as well. Keeping up with the neighbors not really a thing. One neighbor drives a beat up old Peugeot and on the other side they have a very nice BMW and nobody cares. We’d far rather just share our garden vegetables and talk about cheese and the weather. Even postage stamp-sized gardens or balconies have a poti tomatoes, herbs, lettuce. Our basil alone would cost around €50 a summer at supermarket prices. Plus, it’s a teen approved chore. Sometimes whenever we need a new piece of furniture, the treasure hunt begins. In the summer, we head to the Vid Grinier or secondhand shops like Tro. You can find things with real character, history, and at a fraction of the cost of something brand new. Buying things secondhand in France isn’t a last resort. It’s a way of life. And there’s absolutely no shame attached. The vast majority of my clothes come either from vintage or from Vid Granier. France is an extremely culturally rich country with free museum days, concerts in public squares, and municipal events that can be taken advantage of instead of buying expensive outings. Public libraries are a mainstay for books, films, and even cultural workshops. Most families in France shop two or sometimes even three times a week with meals in mind as they shop. It really helps to cut food waste. France actually wastes 30% less food than the US and it keeps produce fresher. They don’t do huge shops for anything they might want. They buy what they’ll need for a few days. There’s a lot more planning in food preparation, and their fridges tend to be smaller. In most French supermarkets, the first thing you will come to is the fruit and vegetable section when you walk in, which avoids you, if shopping on an empty stomach, from filling up your trolley with the more expensive, processed, and unhealthy foods. Because ingredients are bought in small amounts, cooking from scratch just feels natural in France. Basic staples, flour, eggs, seasonal vegetables become creps, ratatouille, or a rustic kiche for pennies per serving. Restaurant nights are treats and not habits. Stick around to the end and I’ll be sharing with you my recipe for a very simple cocova. Petrol or gas is very expensive in France and we bike whenever we can. The cycle path network here in Normandy is really excellent. And if it’s not too far and the sun is shining, yes, it takes longer to get to where you want to go, but you save on gas, enjoy the journey, and get fit. So why not? France has mountains, beaches, wine regions, castles. So why fly hours to a holiday destination? Over 70% of French holidays happen within the country. We’ve just booked a week’s holiday in Britany for €400, cottage included. Also, we really value the countryside around where we live. Old stone houses stay cool. Thick curtains trap heat in the winter. We air dry laundry, use shutters, and heat only the rooms that we use. The French social life centers on the table, not the shopping mall. Picnics in parks or along the river are a summer staple, and gatherings at home with wine, cheese, and a baguette are more common than restaurant meetups. There’s a reason why the French aren’t obsessed with earning a huge salary, and why they don’t need to. Two of the biggest life costs for most people, that of health care and education, are largely taken care of in France. Healthcare in France is considered one of the best in the world and it’s mostly funded through taxes and social contributions. You don’t have to worry about massive hospital bills because the state covers the main part of it. The same goes for education from preschool all the way through to university. Costs are heavily subsidized which means that students aren’t buried in debt like in many other countries. France is one of the highest taxed countries in the world. The trade-off for this is that you get quality services without having to chase a six figure salary just to survive. So in France, it’s not so much about how much you earn, it’s what your earnings can actually get you. And thanks to the generous system, you don’t have to earn a fortune to live comfortably. So that’s how we live well on less. DIY everything, shop intelligently, grow food, treasure hunt, and most importantly, savor the simple pleasures in life. Let me know in the comments which tip you will put into practice first. As promised, here’s my quick and simple recipe for a coco van, which is a traditional French dish made with chicken and red wine. I love cooking when it’s simple and fuss-free. I’m not one for following recipes to the letter or spending hours in the kitchen. As a busy mom, I don’t have the time or energy to fuff about with complicated dishes. But every now and then, I crave something that tastes like it’s been simmering away all day. Coco, or literally rooster in red wine, struck me as one of those far too fancy recipes I’d never attempt. But I was wrong. I found a way to simplify it so it’s easy, stress-free, and absolutely delicious. In fact, it tastes even better the next day after a night in the fridge. My favorite thing about this recipe is that it needs a fruity dry red wine, so you can pour yourself a glass while you’re cooking, which is always nice. Coco van is one of the most iconic dishes in French cuisine and it’s deeply tied to the country’s rural and regional cooking traditions. It’s a traditional peasant dish. Historically, French farmers didn’t butcher young, tender chickens for special occasions. They used older roosters that had stopped breeding. These birds had tough meat, so they needed slow, moist cooking to become tender. The cooking method was to braze them for hours in wine with aromatics, onion, garlic, carrots, mushrooms, and herbs. The acidity of the wine and the long cooking time broke down the tough meat. Although cocoa is now considered a national classic, it’s most strongly linked to Burgundy. The Burgundy version uses uh Van Borggon, which is a Borggonia red wine, and sometimes a splash of brandy or makon. Other regional variations also exist. In Alsas, it’s a coco reling made with Rezling white wine. In Provence, it’s koku vamp provinceal with tomatoes, olives, and local herbs. In Champ, they make koku champ with sparkling wine. And in Normandy, it’s sometimes even made with cider or calvados. I’ll have to try that next time. I think the cocoa represents teroir cooking using local poultry, local wine, and local vegetables. In restaurants, it’s usually made with chicken now since roosters are less available. But the slow braise remains the key technique. In my version, I of course use chicken and it’s a very quick and easy technique. So, just to recap what you’ve seen, I’ve prepared carrots, mushrooms, tomatoes, onion, and garlic. Chop it all up, stick it in the pan with some olive oil, a packet of smoked bacon, any kind that you can find just to add that lovely flavor. 2 tablebspoon of tomato puree, a liter of chicken stock, and two glasses of red wine. If you have some fresh thyme, then add that in as well. if not dried time will do. And then cut the excess skin off some chicken pieces. I used chicken legs with thighs. Uh you can use just drumsticks if you prefer or skinless boneless chicken breast. Whatever you like, whatever you have to hand, doesn’t really matter. Let everything simmer together for another 10 minutes or so. And then add it all to a crock pot and pop it in the oven on 200° for about an hour and a half. The chicken will be perfectly tender and just fall off the bone and all the flavors will be really rich. It’s a very delicious meal and very simple to put together. Today I served it with new potatoes, but it’s also delicious with mashed potato, fresh bread, or pasta, and of course, a glass of red wine. Check out this video next for more insights into the French lifestyle. Thank you so much for watching Living Well in France, and until next time, aben.